Dabaadendiziwin (Humility) Entourage

The Entourage is a supporting group of individuals who have played a significant role throughout the process of making the Ring of Fire, from constructing costumes, to creating the music, to devising the choreographic movement language used during the procession itself. Conceptually, this Entourage and its movements, costume design, and design elements, as well as the colour combination, evokes the spirit of Capoeira—a “game” that is played not to show off one’s strength and command, but rather to explore the potential force of holding back. Humility is the most fluid Entourage group as together they explore the possibilities of the interaction between positive and negative spaces created by though their “play” with the central Sentinel character who provides the mise-en-scene for their “hidden” actions.

Here are a selection of Marlon Griffith’s initial sketches, artistic renderings, technical drawings, and images of the design process and creation of the costumes for Humility’s Entourage. The Entourage for Humility is played by Capoeristas and their costumes introduce another set of “symbols of endurance” that correspond with those of the Seven Grandfather Teachings though from a different cultural world-view. Here each member of the ten-person Entourage carries or wears one of the Orisha symbols (Bow and Arrow, Saber, Dagger, Axe, Crossroads, Crescent Moon, and Heart), which play a central part in African Ceremonial tradition but, after migrating to the Americas, also play a crucial role in the philosophy of Capoeira Angola, a traditional form of Capoeira originating in Brazil. Dressed entirely in white and covered in a lace pattern, these characters are covered in a décor that adorns altars dedicated to Orisha rituals.